Current medical research and opinion
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Observational Study
Costs and resource use of community-dwelling patients with Alzheimer's disease in Japan: 18-month results from the GERAS-J study.
To determine the longitudinal societal costs and burden of community-dwelling patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and their caregivers in Japan. ⋯ Total treatment costs increased with AD severity over 18 months due to increases in both patient social care costs and caregiver informal care costs. Our data suggest current social care services in Japan are insufficient to alleviate the negative impact of AD on caregiver burden.
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Evidence is limited on the economic burden associated with treatment-resistant depression (TRD) among US veterans. We evaluated the economic burden among patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) with and without TRD, and those without MDD in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). ⋯ Among US veterans, TRD poses a significant incremental economic burden relative to non-TRD MDD and non-MDD.
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Inadequate communication about endometriosis symptom burden between women and healthcare providers is a barrier for optimal treatment. This study describes the development of the EndoWheel, a patient-reported assessment tool that visualizes the multi-dimensional burden of endometriosis to facilitate patient-provider communication. ⋯ Similar to visual circular tools used in burden assessment of other chronic diseases, the tool may facilitate improved patient dialogue with providers around endometriosis treatment goals and options.
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A multidisciplinary panel of physicians was convened to gain understanding of the relationship between thromboembolic events (TEs) and immune-mediated diseases (IMDs). The primary objective of the panel was to assess areas of consensus on the IMD most prone to TE as well as modifiable and unmodifiable factors that might exacerbate or mitigate the risk of TEs. ⋯ The panel reached a consensus that several IMDs are at an elevated risk of TEs. Physicians are unable to control most patient level risk factors but can control the therapies being used. Consequently, physicians should consider the specific IMD, be aware of TE risk factors, and take into account risk factors in selecting the therapies to optimally manage their conditions and to reduce the risk of TEs in this population.
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The aim of the study was to determine the trend of first blood prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test prescription in France between 2011 and 2017, based on the assumption that prostate cancer (PCa) screening is expected to decline over the years. ⋯ Our results suggest that in France, PCa screening is a primary care issue. Although PCa screening remains controversial and confusion exists about the best practice, our study showed a linear decrease of blood PSA test prescriptions for 50-52-year-old men between 2011 and 2017, although the reason for screening was unknown. As clinical information was not available, additional evidence is needed to determine the real impact of this decrease on the cancer-specific and overall mortality.